


Opal & Arte

by MangoPantsu



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: F/F, Modern AU, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-13
Updated: 2016-01-13
Packaged: 2018-05-13 18:47:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5713177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MangoPantsu/pseuds/MangoPantsu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The adventures of a sarcastic history major and a snarky mechanic who move in together and take on the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Opal & Arte

**Author's Note:**

> finally lol
> 
> I've been wanting to do this for quiiiite a while now but I've been preoccupied, so here I am. This is ACTUALLY supposed to be a Christmas present for Alyse, but I'm a little late. Better late than never, though, right?
> 
> you can find a sort of prologue to this piece [here](http://rnangopantsu.tumblr.com/post/131266831533/call-out-post)
> 
> ARTEMESIA BELONGS TO [ALYSE](http://orokay.tumblr.com), OPAL IS MINE.
> 
> Enjoy. :-)

 

It was weird to Opal, knowing someone else was in her house, right outside the bathroom door.  
  
She mused about it as she brushed her teeth, staring at herself in the mirror thoughtfully. The day before felt like a wild dream, but it wasn't. She knew because Arte's pair of overalls lay crumpled on the bathroom floor. She glanced at them momentarily before leaning over the sink to spit out the toothpaste. What a strange turn of events.  
  
When Opal told Arte she was coming home with her, like it or not, it had been a spur-of-the-moment kind of action. She didn't think much of it then, or even last night as she fell asleep, but she was starting to come to the full realization she was sharing her home with someone else. It was an odd feeling.  
  
Opal had always sort of lived on her own, even when she lived with her dad. He had worked a lot and they didn't see each other very much at all. He usually came home exhausted, and only managed to give her a kind, tired smile before stumbling off to his bed. She did the cooking and cleaning by herself, for the most part. She had her own room, one she spent a lot of time in.  
  
When she moved out and went to college, Opal had had enough funds between leftover scholarship money and the savings she'd collected over time to get a dorm on campus, but it was one of those single-person dorms, and she'd lived on her own there the entirety of her college life.  
  
After she finished up there, she managed to snag the place she lived now; a simple and modern one-bedroom apartment in a complex with quiet neighbors. If she didn't see one or two every so often when she did laundry or checked the mail, she might think she lived alone.  
  
And now here she was, no longer living alone. She was unsure of how she felt about that.  
  
Opal finished brushing up her hair then, with a weird sort of anticipation in her throat, exited the bathroom. Her eyes immediately flickered to the couch. Arte lay there, in the exact position she'd been in when Opal first left her room to go get ready. She glanced at the clock on the wall, then grimaced. Arte didn't seem like the type of girl who'd be awake at 8:18.  
  
So she went to her room, snatching up her purse. As she went to leave, she caught a look of herself in the full-length mirror that hung in her wall, then turned towards it to fully examine herself.  
  
Opal wore a white button down shirt with vertical black stripes, tucked in neatly to a black A-Line skirt. Her white hair was pulled into a neat low ponytail. A few strands of hair fell in front of her face, but she'd learned long ago to not fight them. She never won. She wore light makeup - mascara, a line of eyeliner on her upper eyelid and some light eyeshadow in nude colors. Her accessories consisted of a simple silver necklace with a small opal gem hanging from it and her white watch. She checked herself out for only a moment longer before leaving the room, satisfied with her appearance.  
  
Arte still showed no signs of waking up, to Opal's slight disappointment. She was quiet in the kitchen as she started a pot of coffee. While she waited on that, she leaned on the counter, flipping through a travel magazine while eating some yogurt - though "eating" was generous. She'd stirred it for a solid minute before she ever put the spoon in her mouth, and now it just sort of dangled there while she read about hidden glacial pools in the Himalayas.  
  
"Hey."  
  
The voice - and the proximity of the voice - made Opal nearly jump out of her skin. She turned around to see Arte standing at the edge of the counter, scratching her stomach underneath a big, worn out t-shirt, her hair disheveled and a tired look on her face. Her eyes grazed over the kitchen before switching back to Opal, who stood there, still surprised, with a spoon hanging out of her mouth.  
  
Opal's blue eyes narrowed a bit on the girl as she moved to remove the spoon from her mouth. No one had ever really sneaked up on Opal like that. She wondered how Arte could've been so quiet.  
  
"Hey. Morning. Sleep well?" she asked, toying with the spoon a bit. Besides her shirt, the only thing she wore was a pair of black panties. It surprised Opal if just a little, but it didn't really bother her. Opal never did understand their society's thing about nudity. Her eyes might have lingered on Arte's defined thighs and calves a bit longer than she should have, though.  
  
"Yeah. Beats the car," Arte replied, in a croaky, sleepy voice. She pushed her wild hair out of her face, but it fell right back into it. "You're making coffee?"  
  
Opal glanced sideways at the coffee pot, the clear pot now filled with the black liquid. "Yep."  
  
"Oh. Cool."  
  
Opal felt the corner of her lip twitch a bit, and she moved towards the coffee pot slowly. "Would you, maybe... like a cup?"  
  
"Yeah. Er, please," Arte answered, adding on the last part as if remembering herself.  
  
Opal thought it over as she opened her cupboard door where her glasses were kept. She removed two mugs from the second shelf and poured them both a cup before making her way over to the fridge.  
  
"You know, Arte..." she started as she withdrew a nearly-empty carton of half-and-half and shook it a bit, slowly making her way back towards the coffee. "You don't have to be all, like, polite with me." Opal uncapped the carton and poured some into her own cup. "In fact, I'd rather you weren't. Hearing you use manners is unnerving. It's like a horse walking on two legs or something."  
  
Arte snorted, crossing her arms. "I'm not. I'm acting normal," she protested, and as if to prove it, she went over to her cup of coffee and sat herself on the countertop, picking up the mug and taking a large gulp.  
  
"If you say so," Opal mused, spooning some sugar into her coffee before stirring it up. "You didn't want any cream or sugar?"  
  
"Nope. I'm good." Arte lifted the mug and taking another drink. Opal raised a brow a bit, amused by her antics as she lifted her own cup to her mouth and took a sip.  
  
They sat in silence for a moment, both in their own little worlds as they drank their coffee. Opal stared off into space, her mind drifting to her earlier thoughts. She definitely wasn't used to living with other people, but this was... nice. Opal could get used to this. She glanced over to Arte, who she was surprised to find had been looking at her. Arte didn't flinch, just held her gaze for a moment before shifting to tuck her leg underneath her.  
  
"I'm hungry," Arte suddenly remarked, and Opal immediately picked up on the slight whine to her voice and narrowed her eyes.  
  
"So make something. I didn't finish all my yogurt. You can have that," Opal declared, turning away from Arte as she put up the half-and-half and dished the spoon.  
  
Arte made a noise that could only be described as disapproval. "I don't want yogurt."  
  
"I think I have some poptarts in the pantry."  
  
"No," Artemesia sighed, "I ate the last pack last night."  
  
Opal thought this over, turning to face Arte, but her words caught in her throat, disbelief spreading across her face.  
  
Arte was _pouting_.  
  
Just a bit, her lower lip sticking out a bit more than normal, a sullen look on her face as she stared at the kitchen floor, but it was definitely a pout. When Arte's eyes flickered up to her, Opal started. She looked like a sad little kitten. Opal's mouth parted, her lips creating an "o" distorted by a grin tugging at her lips.  
  
"You're pouting!" Opal exclaimed, pushing herself from the counter she had been leaning on. "You're legitimately pulling a puppy dog face on me!"  
  
Arte straightened up with an indignant look. "I am not!" She huffed and looked down, her eyebrows furrowing and bottom lip sticking out a bit more.  
  
"You're doing it right now!" Opal accused her, unable to keep a laugh out of her voice. "You're trying to guilt me into making you breakfast."  
  
"No, you just think I want you to because you want to," Arte retorted, putting down her cup. "I wasn't going to ask you to go to the trouble, but obviously, you want to so badly you're projecting it onto me. Don't let me stop you." She looked expectantly at Opal, somehow managing to keep a straight face.  
  
Opal snorted, rolling her eyes. She actually considered it for a moment, but with a glance at her watch, the idea was quickly nixed. "Well, I have to go to work, so I don't have time to cook you breakfast, much to my own despair."  
  
Arte looked a bit glum at that, and took a large gulp of her coffee before hopping off counter. "On your way I need to be dropped off at the shop."  
  
Opal was confused for a moment before she remembered that she had driven Arte here in her own car and abandoned Arte's at the shop. She glanced at the clock once more to make sure she wasn't running late before giving a single nod. "Alright, throw some clothes on."  
  
Arte slunk off in the direction of the living room. While Arte did that, Opal rummaged through her kitchen, in search of something fast and easy. She managed to find some frozen waffles stashed away in the back of the freezer, and, triumphant, popped two of them in the toaster.  
  
As she turned around to wait for those babies to heat up, she was surprised to see Arte reentering the kitchen, hands stuffed in the pockets of some torn-up denim jeans.  
  
"Oh," was all she said, dumbstruck. "I didn't think you'd be that fast."  
  
Arte lifted one shoulder in a lazy shrug as she returned to her cup of coffee. "Getting ready doesn't take that long."  
  
Opal's hour and a half morning routine begged to differ, but she decided against mentioning that. "Well, I have some waffles." She gestured in the general direction of the toaster. "They're not a Grand Slam Breakfast, but hopefully they'll do." Opal finished off her coffee, and concentrated on rinsing off her mug. For some reason she felt a bit shy about it - which was stupid, but she couldn't help it. Would Arte see her as a pushover? Or would she think Opal was too eager to please Arte? Either one wouldn't be too far off the mark, Opal thought sourly to herself as she turned to face the music.  
  
Arte wasn't looking at Opal, much to her relief, but rather staring blankly at the toaster. Opal studied her face as she did so, trying to read her emotions, but couldn't make anything from it.  
  
As if feeling her gaze, Arte turned her head, and suddenly those sharp eyes were on Opal. It took quite a bit of willpower to keep herself from averting her eyes, but she managed, and stared right back at Arte, just like Arte had done when Opal had caught her staring at her.  
  
They maintained eye contact a second that felt like an entire minute until the toaster dinged and the waffles popped up. Opal impulsively moved towards the waffles, withdrawing a paper plate from the cupboard and tossing both of them onto it before turning towards Arte and extending the plate towards her. "Bon appétit," she added, as casually as she could.  
  
Arte hesitated for a moment, eyes narrowed, then slowly took the plate from Opal's hands. Her eyes flickered to the waffles, staring at them quite speculatively, while Opal did the same at Arte.  
  
Arte sniffed once before looking up at Opal. "No syrup?"  
  
Opal's awkwardness evaporated as she snorted, a grin cracking over her face. "God, I should have seen that coming. How could I forget the syrup?"  
  
"Rookie mistake," Arte agreed, nodding her head solemnly.  
  
Opal laughed outright, rolling her eyes as she stood up straight. "Well, you can get it out of the pantry yourself. I'm gonna go start the car."  
  
As Arte turned towards the pantry, Opal equipped herself with her purse, her coat, and her keys before she left the apartment. The hallway of her apartment was quiet, all but the faint sound of the air conditioning system and the buzz of the fluorescents that lit up her surroundings. Like always.  
  
Opal took the elevator down to the small parking garage, finding her car easily, as a large chunk of the cars had cleared out. As she unlocked her car and started it, she absently thought about how she'd have to update her contract if Arte stayed with her. She didn't want to get in trouble for an unclaimed tenant.  
  
It was chilly, and the car didn't yield her any sort of heat. Opal cursed it under her breath, then apologized and stroked the steering wheel in an endearing way. "You try your hardest," she spoke to it solemnly.  
   
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a familiar figure step out of the elevator, in an oversized hoodie and holding a plate in her hands. Opal watched as Arte glanced around until she saw Opal's car and made her way over to it. She yanked open the passenger door and flopped in haphazardly before closing the door again.  
  
"If you get syrup on my baby, I will hurt you," Opal warned mildly as she pulled her seatbelt around her and clicked it into place. "And buckle up."  
  
"Yes, mother," Arte responded dryly, balancing the plate with one hand as she put on her own seatbelt.  
  
Satisfied, Opal shifted her car into reverse.  
  
They drove in silence for a moment before Opal reached over and turned on the stereo. One of her CDs resumed, and a lazy voice continued singing To All Of You by Syd Matters.  
  
Arte made a noise, and Opal spared a glance over at her for second before looking back to the road. "What is this?" Arte asked around a mouthful of waffle with a look of distaste.  
  
"My hipster indie CD," Opal answered, in the best hipster voice she could manage, before scoffing. "I wouldn't expect you to get it."  
  
Arte made a disgusted noise, her lip curling. "Shut up."  
  
Opal huffed. "You just don't appreciate true art," she declared, shaking her head.  
  
"Opal, shut up or I'll punch you," Arte threatened, putting her feet on the dash.  
  
Opal snickered before leaning over and smacking Arte's feet down. Arte pouted before lifted a waffle folded in half and dripping syrup to her mouth and taking a big bite.  
  
"Get enough syrup?" Opal teased her lightly.  
  
"The top of your stupid syrup bottle came off and soaked them," Arte grumbled.  
  
Opal side-eyed her, thinking this over as she pulled off the side of the road next to the auto shop Arte worked at. She wondered what type of food Arte liked.  
  
Arte polished off the last of the waffles before folding the paper plate in half and wiping her mouth off on her sleeve. "Thanks for the ride."  
  
Opal nodded, bracing herself as Artemesia opened the passenger door and the cold air penetrated the stifling heat that had accumulated in the car. "No problem."  
  
Arte climbed out, then shut the door behind her. Opal turned to shift her car into drive, assuming that was it before she heard a knock on the passenger window. She rolled it down as Arte leaned into the car a bit.  
  
"When do you get off?" Arte asked, not quite looking at Opal.  
  
"Four or five," she responded, glancing at the stereo clock.  
  
Arte expelled her breath, looking over her shoulder. "Cool."  
  
Opal eyed her for a moment before suddenly turning her attention to her key ring. She fidgetted it with until removing a shiny, silver key that looked like it had hardly ever been used. "Here," she said, leaning towards Arte. Arte held out her hand, and Opal pressed the key into Arte's palm before straightening up. "Let yourself in."  
  
Arte stared at the key for a second, her face unreadable before she stuffed her hands into her jacket pockets. "'Kay. See you at home."  
  
Opal felt a strange twinge when Arte said "home". Why did that word make her feel warm all over? It didn't seem to have any effect on Arte at all. "See you at home," she murmured, just loud enough for Arte to hear.  
  
Arte pivoted and walked off towards the closed shop. Opal watched her back for a moment before turning towards he steering wheel while she rolled up the passenger window again.  
  
As Opal pulled back into the flow of traffic and pointed herself in the direction of her work, her mind lingered on the word "home".  
  
No, Opal definitely wasn't used to living with someone or cooking them breakfast or driving them to work in the morning. It was strange, weird, and a bit awkward getting into the groove of it, and she was sure it would take her a while to realize it fully. But...  
  
Opal thought of Arte, her amusing antics and her sense of humor, her messy bed-head, her sharp eyes, her smile, her laugh.  
  
Yes, this would be weird, but Opal had a feeling she would love it.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I was kinda stressed out like I always am whenever I write other people's characters because I don't want to mischaracterize them, but I kinda forced myself to come to terms with the fact I'm never going to write a character perfectly at all times, not even my own, so that helped. I've actually started planning a lot of how this fic is going to go down because I wanted to try my hand at structured writing versus what I usually do, which is wing it, lol.
> 
> Anyways, we'll see how successful I am.
> 
> I love them so much.......,,.,,.


End file.
